The present invention relates to the technical field of instant messaging, and more specifically, to the validation of character strings entered by a user of an instant messaging application.
Instant messaging is a type of communication between computer users which allows a user on one computer to engage in a conversation with one or more other users on other computers in real time via a computer network such as the Internet. Communication is controlled by instant messaging server software to which participating computer users connect. The server maintains address details of participating computers and connects a first user with one or more further users when a conversation is initiated by entry of recipient identification details such as a name.
Each participating computer comprises instant messaging client software for providing a user interface window including a text entry pane, into which the user types the text for sharing with the other participating users in the conversation. The user interface window also includes a chat session pane, in which is displayed the text entered by all users participating in the chat session. Instant messaging is generally a more informal and spontaneous exchange medium than other means such as electronic mail, and inaccuracies of spelling and punctuation are generally accepted. However, there are some character strings which must be typed with total accuracy. For example, a user may enter a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI), which can be described as a string of characters used to identify an address or resource on a network such as the Internet. More particularly, a user may enter a Uniform Resource Locator (URL), which is type of URI used to denote an address of, for example, an Internet web page.